About Bethel
Hi Jennifer,
First of all, thanks for all the questions you answer! I really appreciate them!
I was looking for the name Bethel and didn’t see it in your database. Some websites seem to say it’s for a girl, and some for a boy. Read More
Jennifer Moss (she/her) is the founder of BabyNames.com, author of The Baby Names Workbook, and Producer of The Baby Names Podcast. Jennifer is widely regarded as the leading expert on popular baby name trends and the naming process, serving as the authoritative source on the subject for national and international media.
Jennifer entered the tech arena in the 80s as a software developer and database architect, and became a pioneer in the Internet industry. In addition to operating BabyNames.com, Jennifer owns a web development agency in central California.
Crossed Swords
Dear Jennifer,
We are expecting our third child next month. We have two boys, Paxton and Zephan. We love unique names and it’s important that they end in “n.” For a boy we love Quillan, which means cub. Read More
Created name: Nicora
Dear Jennifer,
I just came across the baby name Nicora, and thought it was very unique but not too outlandish for a baby girl (albeit a bit more exotic than other daughters names’, Claire and Morgan). Read More
Initials may be teasable?
Hi Jennifer,
My husband and I are trying to agree on a girl name. I like the name Leah, but my husband pointed out that with our last name her initials would be L.D. (without her middle initial). Read More
For the love of Beatrice
Jennifer,
My fiancee and I are already considering names for when we decide to start a family. We both love Beatrice (especially me due to the name’s wonderful association with Dante’s poetry), however, my last name starts with an S and our fear is that Beatrice S**** will be too cumbersome to pronounce because the two S-sounds will run together. Read More
Hail to the Elf Armies!
Hi Jennifer, I was wondering what the name Alpherie meant. It was my grandfather’s name, and it’s not on your site. Do you know anything about it? Sincerely, Jean Dear Jean, As far as I can tell from my research, Alpherie is a French derivative of the German name ALFHER or more modern name OLIVER. Read MoreNadia+Aria = Nadaria
Hi Jennifer,
I was messing around with names recently and came up with Nadaria, a mix of Nadia and Aria.
I was thinking it could mean hopeful melody and am now thinking about using it for my first daughter. Read More
VIDEO: Name Sniping
Hello! I’ve decided to answer some of our reader questions on video! Today’s topic is baby name sniping: when you’ve planned to use a baby name and someone close to you decides to use it first! Read More
Perception of the name India
Hi Jennifer,
I’m wondering about your thoughts on the name India. When choosing a name for me twenty-two years ago, my parents considered both India and Hilary, however, they went with the latter because they were too nervous to give me such an exotic name. Read More
Gloriette
Dear Jennifer,
My grandmother’s first name was Gloriette, pronounced glory-et. I’ve tried looking up this name before with no luck. Does the name come from somewhere? People used the nickname Glo for her a lot. That side of the family also has a strong French Canadian background. Read More
The name Chapin
Dear Jennifer,
I recently watched a movie called “Triple Dog” and the main character was a girl named Chapin.
I noticed you didn’t have it on the website and I would really like to know what it means. Read More
Liam or Asher?
Hi Jennifer,
Which name do you prefer, Liam or Asher with the last name Bowman?
Sincerely,
Ashley
Dear Ashley,
If you say both names out loud, Asher Bowman sounds better than Liam Bowman. With Liam, the ‘M’ in both the first and last name makes it a little clunky. Read More
How to Ask Jennifer
I receive hundreds of emails a month asking for name advice. I do love researching names! However there is a right and a wrong way to ask. So I thought this was worthy of a post:
1. Read More
Meaning of the name Chainie
Hi Jennifer,
My husband’s cousin’s name is ‘Chainie’. I have never heard of this name before until I met her. As far as I know this is not a nickname and is her actual first name. Read More
New Names: Nathana and Veina?
Hello Jennifer,
I’ve come up with two new unique girl names. The names are Veina and Nathana. I think I came up with Veina because I was thinking about the name Reigna which is beautiful as well. Read More
